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23 People From Low-Income Homes Explain The Things That Rich Kids Would Never Understand
Article created by: Justinas Keturka
While the United States is considered to be one of the richest countries in the world, it has a huge wealth gap—more than 34M of its residents live in poverty. Many of them are facing financial struggles every single day and can easily see the privileges others are lucky to have.
So when a couple of users asked people who grew up in low-income families to share things that the rich would never understand, it sparked quite a conversation on the r/AskReddit sub. Whether it’s talking about household items, chores, or food on the table, commenters quickly started telling the unwritten rules they had to live by.
Take a look below at some of the most illuminating answers we collected from the thread. And after you’re done, don’t forget to check out our previous posts about the subtle signs that show a person is rich here and right here.
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#1
That it never goes away. I want from homeless growing up to having a very comfy six figure job. I still find myself acting as if I am always living on the edge of homelessness again. Thinking I can't try new foods because it I don't like it then I won't get dinner. That I'm a bad person for throwing out things instead of trying to reuse them. I get serious panic attacks I think I did bad at work because my brain still tells me I'm one paycheck from the street.
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#2
True hunger. I don't mean that casual "I guess I should eat..." feeling, I mean that hollow, cramping pain deep in your stomach, the hunger that feels like your own body is eating itself from the inside out and that drives you crazy to the point you'll eat anything you can chew through just to try and keep the pain away.
Nobody should have to feel that, poor or not, especially a child.
#4
A lifetime of clutter because it's so hard to throw anything away even when you're no longer poor.
#5
Seeing your mother wear 20+ year old worn out clothing and what amount to rags she collected from hospital visits, all so her child could have the best. Then the sadness of not being able to spoil her when you finally have your own money because she passed away too young.
Well... I just made myself sad lol
#6
I've got one: not having vacations.
I'm in my thirties now. Work in tech. Work thing they had some trivia game and one of the questions was both "(senior leaders) A and B went to this same ski lodge last so and so".
Had been functioning as the team 'ace' with the more brainy questions- for that I just leaned back and went "Welp, no help to us here; I don't know any ski lodges"
My whole team, baffled prodded me going "wait, you don't know any? Just guess the one you went to as a kid with your family"
So . . . explained to like 3 other adults that poor families don't do that. I had never had a family vacation. Winter meant hauling firewood.
#7
This actually is painful to type, but, here goes.
Sometimes, only being able to see your mother for fifteen minutes a day when she picks you up or drops you off at school, because she has to work 18 hours a day just to support you. Having to wear shoes from Pay-Less because your mom can't afford anything better. Having to borrow food from other kids at school because your mom can't afford food, and the school lunches aren't free. Having to sometimes go a day or two without eating at all because you lost your food stamp card. Only having 12 channels of TV, and that TV is 30 years old, and only 14 inches. Having to watch other kids get everything they wanted for their birthdays, just so you can kind of pretend its your birthday party.
#8
Watching your mom have to put items back as there is it not enough money to pay for everything.
#9
Having dinner and knowing that your Mum isn't eating, not because she isn't hungry, but because she's making sure her kids have food first.
#10
When I went to school (in the '70s). At lunch time we had to stand in line in the hall before going into the cafeteria. they made those of us on 'free lunches' stand in the back of the line. It was quite humiliating.
#11
My ex was wealthy and never understood why I don’t answer phone numbers I don’t recognize. We just never did that at my house, and now I understand it was probably to avoid debt collectors.
#13
Back in the Dominican Republic, my mom would lean a chair against each exit door at night and put metal cups on top of the chairs. If someone tried forcing the door open, the metal cups would fall — alarming us of the danger. That was our 'security' system for years.
#14
What a luxury laundry is. Those kids i went to.school with will never understand I was so poor my family couldn't afford to use the laundry machines in our building, so often times my dad would just get a big cheap bottle of dish soap or some bars of Irish Spring, and that soap was for laundry, dishes and bathing. Also that those tv dinners were a god send. Getting 20 banquet tv dinners for 10 bucks meant eating good for a few days.
#15
All my gifts for Christmas and Birthdays were something I needed or would need and had to be bought anyway. Like clothes, shoes, or school supplies. Never, never anything fun or just because I wanted it. I also had to steal my first real bra because I'd outgrown my training bra. I'd even snipped the elastic all around to provide more stretch but it wasn't working anymore and people were commenting on it.
#16
'There's a trick to it' is a phrase to indicate something is messed up, but not enough to fix it. See also: 'Ya gotta jiggle the handle.'
#18
I remember coming back from summer vacation and dreading going back to school for the mere fact I had nothing interesting to share about the summer. All my classmates would talk about their vacations and I would make something up so I wouldn’t sound boring.
#19
Why your parents are incredibly strict and won't let you go anywhere or do anything.
My mom never allowed me to go with friends because she knew I wouldn't be able to afford hanging out with them. I always thought she was just really strict, but really she just wanted to spare me the embarrassment.
#20
Yogurt and other grocery containers used as Tupperware. A bunch of basins for hand-washing clothes in the bathtub.
#21
I think Western poor houses would tend to be more cluttered. You can't rebuy things easily, so you end up keeping around doubles of things you already have, or extra things you aren't using but might need sometime. You don't know if you'll be able to afford it in the future.
#23
When it's really hot in the South, it can be hard to sleep. I keep a mister water bottle by the bed and mist the sheet before I go to sleep, and periodically cool off through the night.
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